CHARLES WADDELL, PASSED MIDN, USN

Charles Waddell '46

Date of birth: May 25, 1822

Age: 25

Loss

Charles died of an "illness of five days" that involved vomiting on August 30, 1847 while aboard Schooner On-ka-hy-e. The ship was traveling from Pensacola, Florida to New York City. (Information from a letter written to the Department of the Navy by the the ship's commanding officer.)

Register of Alumni gives date of death but no other information.

Other Information

From researcher Kathy Franz:

Charles Mortimer Waddell – born 5/25/1822, christened 7/30/1822 at St. Michael's Church, Trenton.
His father was Henry Lawrence Waddell, (1781-1833) who had a large farm/plantation outside of Philadelphia in Morrisville. He lived at Summerseat house in 1813 when he and his wife Elizabeth hosted Lafayette. Henry was a member of the Pennsylvania Agricultural Society since at least 1822, and he was director of the Philadelphia & Trenton Railroad (elected 1832). They had four children - Ann (1815-1830), Elizabeth (1819-1859), George (1820-?), and Charles. Elizabeth and George were christened as well at St. Michael's Church. Henry's father was the Rev. Henry Waddell (1745-1811) who was rector at St. Michael's Church (1798-1811). His children were Lucia, George Mortimer, Henry Lawrence, John, Mary Ann, and Elizabeth. Henry, his wife Lucia, son Henry Lawrence and granddaughter Ann are all buried in the church's cemetery.

He was born in Pennsylvania but appointed to the Naval Academy from Iowa.

Career

From the Naval History and Heritage Command:

Midshipman, 14 March, 1840. Passed Midshipman, 11 July, 1846. Died 30 August, 1847.

Memorial Hall Error

Illness is not a criteria for inclusion in Memorial Hall. Also, Charles is listed as an Ensign; however, this rank did not exist until 1862. Should be "Passed Midshipman."

Navy Directories & Officer Registers

The "Register of Commissioned and Warrant Officers of the United States Navy and Marine Corps" was published annually from 1815 through at least the 1970s; it provided rank, command or station, and occasionally billet until the beginning of World War II when command/station was no longer included. Scanned copies were reviewed and data entered from the mid-1840s through 1922, when more-frequent Navy Directories were available.

The Navy Directory was a publication that provided information on the command, billet, and rank of every active and retired naval officer. Single editions have been found online from January 1915 and March 1918, and then from three to six editions per year from 1923 through 1940; the final edition is from April 1941.

The entries in both series of documents are sometimes cryptic and confusing. They are often inconsistent, even within an edition, with the name of commands; this is especially true for aviation squadrons in the 1920s and early 1930s.

Alumni listed at the same command may or may not have had significant interactions; they could have shared a stateroom or workspace, stood many hours of watch together… or, especially at the larger commands, they might not have known each other at all. The information provides the opportunity to draw connections that are otherwise invisible, though, and gives a fuller view of the professional experiences of these alumni in Memorial Hall.